Disclaimer: This story is based on the original series of Battlestar Galactica and the characters from the book series, and I make no claim of ownership over any existing characters (I only claim to own the extra characters I have made up myself! hehehe)
By the way, this is my first fanfic, so please don't expect miracles, but I would love all readers to review...pleease!
To Aynot: thank you for being the only one reviewing this work – it's because of you that I went back and got to work on finishing this one. Let me know what you think, because I think I'm starting to get lost … Anyways read on and hopefully you will enjoy!
Chapter Three: The Beginning of the End.
Holding onto Chandra's forearm, Athena gritted her teeth as another wave of pain overcame her. Boomer heard nothing and moved into the forward compartment with the other officers. Chandra felt his presence leave but she was more focused on the struggle with Athena to call him for help. Not understanding why Athena pulled away, Chandra tried again. This time, Athena used her grip to roughly hold her back; her whispered, "No!" held strength even as her own was fading.
"But, … you're dying! If you won't do it for yourself, do it for –," Chandra's quiet desperation was interrupted by Athena's firm shake of her head as sweat from her effort to hold on ran down her forehead. Chandra could see the wheels turning over in her eyes even now, and wondered not for the first time why it had taken a tragedy for their superiors to recognize her potential.
"I don't need you to tell me the risks, Captain – I knew them from the first! Think about this; too much has been revealed too soon! I know my father too well; if you healed me now as well, he would be so focused on trying to understand us, the real issues would be forgotten! Once I'm on Galactica, I'll be fine, and my injury would be incentive to cut a wide birth around this planet. You just focus on getting me there, and on keeping their mouths shut about what they saw!" With a nod towards the forward compartment, Chandra knew Athena meant the other four officers on board. She could recognize the validity of Athena's arguments; if the truth of their identities was revealed too soon to the Council, it would be impossible to find the real traitor still working for Baltar, and all their mission objectives would be exposed.
Chandra also knew there was another reason Athena did not want to be thrust into the limelight at this moment; and with a forced nod, she accepted Athena's decision. If Orin were to be revealed now, the situation would really grow out of control. Using a fingertip to trace a gentle line down Athena's cheek, she used her mental powers to ease Athena's pain, and forced herself to leave Athena and do what had to be done.
Entering the forward section of the shuttle, Chandra pushed the echo of Athena's slow shallow breaths from her ears and focused on the end of the communication exchange between the shuttle and the Galactica. Apollo turned to watch her as she laid a hand on the back of his pilot seat, and she returned his suspicious glare with a cold gaze of her own. Reaching over, she cut off the comm. channels with a flick of her wrist, ignoring a fractious "Hey" from Starbuck in the co-pilot seat as she turned back to Apollo.
"You need to hurry straight back to your Battlestar – your sister is dying!" Not allowing the stunned, "What!" from the someone or other behind her, she focused on Apollo's paling face as she continued, "She took a bullet to the abdomen; it's still in there, and it's causing some serious damage. She's also losing a lot of blood. If we don't get her back to a medic team soon, we're going to lose!"
Keeping her eyes locked with Apollo's until she was certain the gravity of the situation had sunk in, she stepped back to allow the older man to leap out of his seat and race back to his sister's side, calling over his shoulder for someone to radio the situation to the Galactica. Starbuck took over piloting controls, gunning the engines as Boomer slipped into the vacant seat beside his distraught friend, and Green began hailing the Battlestar to inform them of the need to have the Life Centre ready for them on their arrival.
Standing quietly in the shadows of the hatchway, Chandra reached out with her mind, slipping past the open defences of the three men before her busy on their tasks, and seeking their recollections of the events planet side. With a determined if grim look on her face and a firm concentration, she used her abilities to cloud over their memories, shifting their emotional responses so that they could never quite remember what had happened after they had stepped off the shuttle. Releasing her hold after ensuring that her work was permanently in place, she gave them one last glance before turning back to join Apollo and Athena.
The voice of someone familiar calling her name pulled Athena out of a hazy drifting somewhere golden. She thought she could see a vague face somewhere close by, but the voice shifted and changed, and she opened her eyes with an effort to see her brother leaning solicitously over her as his right hand pressed firmly on the bandaging to stem the blood flow. Giving his bent head a weak smile, she lifted her hand and played with a few loose strands of his hair. Her hand was starting to feel heavy, like it was covered in a cumbersome substance, but Athena ignored her weakened body and kept her eyes as free of pain as she could.
Apollo started at her touch, and raised his head to watch his sister. Athena almost chuckled at the expression in his eyes, and in an attempt to keep the mood as light as possible, remarked that this was probably the end of her career on away missions. Instead of joining in her amusement, Apollo's eyes still held an angry, hallow expression. With a sigh, Athena read the look to mean that her brother was lost in the memories of the day they had lost the other members of their small of their small family. Laying a palm against her brother's cold cheek, she tried to bring him away from the painful memories of Zac's death, and the ensuing chaos that had followed.
Opening her mouth to call his name gently, her body was wracked with a sudden, painful shudder. She bit back a verbal expression of the immense wave of pain she now felt, and she wished for a brief moment that Chandra would give her another escape from the pain. Apollo snapped back to reality as he felt his sister stiffen and the warm flow of her blood spread through the bindings and onto his palm. With a feral growl, he pushed Chandra aside as she rushed forward to grab Athena bodily from his arms, and he called out his sister's name as he threatened and cajoled her, trying desperately to keep her with him as he reminded her that they were close to help.
Chandra bit back her own pain as her connection with Athena allowed her to share the anguish her friend was enduring. Cold tears threatened to overflow, and she used every ounce of her self-control to hold her emotions from erupting. Reaching out with her mind, she gave Starbuck a mental shove to get help faster, and before long, the buzzing and scrapping of a docking ship filled her ears.
As soon as the ship stopped moving and the outer hatch lifted open, a crew of three medics filled the space around her and lifted a barely conscious Athena onto a stretcher that would carry her safely to the Life Centre. Apollo refused to leave his sister's side, and clasping his blood stained hands into tight fists balled at his side, he ignored his father's urgent appeals for information to chase after her prone form. Chandra kept pace with him, determined to watch over Athena as she slipped in and out of consciousness even though her very presence on the Galactica was against every direction she could think of, but resolved to worry about any disciplinary action they could and would bring against her later, she used her mental powers to stay connected to the young woman now bravely fighting for her life. Starbuck, Boomer, and Green watched the small party leave the Docking Bay with mixed feelings of fear, insecurity and confusion.
Adama found his son pacing the sterile, white corridors of the Life Centre as a young girl, unfamiliar to the old man stood stonily still, her hands kept firmly pressed against the glass partitions that kept the Observation Room separate from the operating tables beyond. Apollo barely raised his head in acknowledgement of his father's presence, but Adama's only focus was what was beyond that pane. Dr. Salik worked furiously with qualified medical assistants at repairing the damage her body had suffered, but Athena had lost her grip on consciousness and they were slowly but surely losing her. Adama moved to stand beside the young girl, his breath hitching in his chest at the unthinkable conclusion he was about to lose another child and that was when he noticed the girl was not as still as he had first thought. Her eyes looked glazed over, but her body rocked backwards and forwards in a slight but sure rhythm. As much as her behaviour caught his sympathetic curiosity he couldn't bring himself to make a move to comfort her.
There were others gathering in the corridor now that a work cycle was ending, others that also cared for Athena, but in his shock, he couldn't place the names to their voices nor did he really hear their words of comfort. What did break through his haze and echoed loudly in his ears pushing out the buzzing that blocked everything else out was the source of Athena flat lining. The world suddenly cleared and sharpened painfully, as Dr. Salik tried frantically to revive her, but she responded to nothing. Apollo ceased his pacing, and he held back his breath as his face broke into a devastated expression.
With a piercing scream, Chandra pushed away from the glass, disappearing and reappearing on the other side of the pane. Apollo took her place as he watched in disbelief at what was happening. Her hands raised, she used her powers to send loose instruments flying around the room in an attempt to frighten the medical staff from the room and barred the door, keeping any and all of them out. Those now locked outside the operating theatre that were not attempting to bust their way back in, crowded around the transparent partitions to watch the unfolding events as Chandra moved slowly back across the room to stand over the silent body of her now dead friend.
Next Chapter:
What would it take to bring Athena back from the dead – is it possible, or would the price be too great to pay?
AN: Hey all, sorry I've been gone so long – but I had trouble getting the wording right. I still am not completely happy with it, but it's better than nothing. Hopefully Chapter Four will be better but it might be a little while to get it into action.
For now, please, please review, because I am soo not feeling the love!
Ciao ciao